Evangelical Church in the Rhineland

Last updated

The Protestant Church in the Rhineland (German : Evangelische Kirche im Rheinland; EKiR) is a United Protestant church body in parts of the German states of North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland and Hesse (Wetzlar). This is actually the area covered by the former Prussian Rhine Province until 1920.

Contents

Evangelical Church in the Rhineland EKD Rheinland.svg
Evangelical Church in the Rhineland

The seat of the church is in Düsseldorf. The church leader is not called a "bishop", but a praeses (German : Präses), and there is no cathedral. The Protestant Church in the Rhineland is a full member of the Protestant Church in Germany (EKD), and is a Prussian Union Church. The current praeses is Thorsten Latzel. The Evangelical Church in the Rhineland is one of 20 Lutheran, united, and Reformed churches of the EKD. As of December 2020, the church has 2,398,996 members [1] in 809 parishes. The Protestant Church in the Rhineland is a member of the UEK and the Community of Protestant Churches in Europe and also the Reformed Alliance. [2] The church runs a conference venue called Evangelische Akademie. It is a member of the Conference of Churches on the Rhine.

Some theological statements

The theological teaching goes back on Martin Luther. The ordination of women is allowed. The blessing of same-sex unions has been allowed by the synod and depends on the local church administration (German : Presbyterium, English: presbytery ). [3]

History

The Protestant Church in the Rhineland emerged on 12 November 1948, when the Ecclesiastical Province of the Rhineland within the Evangelical Church of the old-Prussian Union gained independence as its own church body. The Protestants in Hohenzollern merged in 1950 with the Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Württemberg, whilst retaining the previous old-Prussian order of service. [4]

Legislative assembly and leaders

The legislative assembly of the Evangelical Church in the Rhineland is the regional synod (Landessynode). The election of the synod is for four years. Since 1975 the synod meets annually in January in Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler (before 1975 in Bad Godesberg). Its elected leader (praeses) is also leader of the church.

Praesides

The legislative body, then called the provincial synod (Provinzialsynode), was already established when the Rhenish church still formed an ecclesiastical province of the Evangelical Church of the old-Prussian Union. The then praesides were only speakers of the synod but not the leaders of the ecclesiastical province. Instead this function was with the general superintendents. Since the ecclesiastical province assumed its independence each praeses is speaker of the synod and leader of the church.

Books

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evangelical Church in Germany</span> Group of churches in Germany

The Evangelical Church in Germany, also known as the Protestant Church in Germany, is a federation of twenty Lutheran, Reformed, and United Protestant regional Churches in Germany, collectively encompassing the vast majority of the country's Protestants. In 2022, the EKD had a membership of 19,153,000 members, or 22.7% of the German population. It constitutes one of the largest Protestant bodies in the world. Church offices managing the federation are located in Herrenhausen, Hanover, Lower Saxony. Many of its members consider themselves Lutherans.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Thuringia was a Lutheran member church of the umbrella Protestant Church in Germany. The seat of the church was in Eisenach. The church covered those parts of the state of Thuringia that were not part of the former Province of Saxony. It was the largest Protestant denomination in this area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pomeranian Evangelical Church</span> Former Protestant church in Germany

The Pomeranian Evangelical Church was a Protestant regional church in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, serving the citizens living in Hither Pomerania. The Pomeranian Evangelical Church was based on the teachings brought forward by Martin Luther and other Reformators during the Reformation. It combined Lutheran and Reformed traditions. The seat of the church was Greifswald, the bishop's preaching venue was the former Collegiate Church of St. Nicholas in Greifswald.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">German Evangelical Church</span> Protestant Reich church

The German Evangelical Church was a successor to the German Protestant Church Confederation from 1933 until 1945. It is also known in English as the Protestant Reich Church and colloquially as the Reich Church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prussian Union of Churches</span> German Protestant church body

The Prussian Union of Churches was a major Protestant church body which emerged in 1817 from a series of decrees by Frederick William III of Prussia that united both Lutheran and Reformed denominations in Prussia. Although not the first of its kind, the Prussian Union was the first to occur in a major German state.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Hanover</span>

The Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Hanover is a Lutheran church body (Landeskirche) in the northern German state of Lower Saxony and the city of Bremerhaven covering the territory of the former Kingdom of Hanover.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evangelical Lutheran Church in Oldenburg</span>

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Oldenburg is a Lutheran church in the German state of Lower Saxony.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Protestant Church in Hesse and Nassau</span> United Protestant church body in the German federal states of Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate

The Protestant Church in Hesse and Nassau is a United Protestant church body in the German federal states of Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate. There is no bishop and therefore no cathedral. One of its most prominent churches is Katharinenkirche in Frankfurt am Main.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evangelical Church of Bremen</span> United Protestant member church of the Protestant Church in Germany

The Evangelical Church of Bremen is a United Protestant member church of the Protestant Church in Germany in the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen.

The Evangelical Church Berlin-Brandenburg-Silesian Upper Lusatia is a United Protestant church body in the German states of Brandenburg, Berlin and a part of Saxony.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evangelical Church of Westphalia</span> United Protestant church body in North Rhine-Westphalia

The Protestant Church of Westphalia is a United Protestant church body in North Rhine-Westphalia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evangelical Church of the Palatinate</span> United Protestant church in parts of two German states

Evangelical Church of the Palatinate is a United Protestant church in parts of the German states of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland, endorsing both Lutheran and Calvinist orientations.

The Evangelical Church of the Church Province of Saxony was the most important Protestant denomination in the German Province of Saxony, also known as Prussian Saxony (1816-1944) and state of Saxony-Anhalt. As a united Protestant church, it combined both Lutheran and Reformed traditions. On 1 January 2009 the church body merged with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Thuringia into the Evangelical Church in Central Germany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria</span>

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria is a Lutheran member church of the Protestant Church in Germany in the German state of Bavaria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">F. K. Otto Dibelius</span> German Protestant bishop

Friedrich Karl Otto Dibelius was a German bishop of the Evangelical Church in Berlin-Brandenburg, a self-described anti-Semite and up to 1934 a conservative, who became a staunch opponent of Nazism and communism.

Lutheran viewpoints concerning homosexuality are diverse because there is no one worldwide body which represents all Lutherans. The Lutheran World Federation, a worldwide 'communion of churches' and the largest global body of Lutherans, contains member churches on both sides of the issue. However, other Lutherans, including the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference and International Lutheran Council, completely reject homosexuality.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Württemberg</span> Protestant church of Württemberg, Germany

The Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Württemberg is a Lutheran member church of the Protestant Church in Germany in the German former state of Württemberg, now part of the state of Baden-Württemberg.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Protestant Church of Anhalt</span>

The Protestant Church of Anhalt is a United Protestant member church of the Protestant Church in Germany. Its seat is in Dessau-Roßlau in Saxony-Anhalt, in the former duchy of Anhalt. This church is the smallest regional church in Germany in terms of membership.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Protestant Church in Baden</span> United Protestant member church of the Protestant Church in Germany

The Protestant Church in Baden is a United Protestant member church of the Protestant Church in Germany (EKD), and member of the Conference of Churches on the Rhine, which now functions as a regional group of the Community of Protestant Churches in Europe (CPCE). The Evangelical Church in Baden is a united Protestant church. Its headquarter, the Evangelical Superior Church Council is located in Karlsruhe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Annette Kurschus</span> German Protestant theologian and pastor (born 1963)

Annette Kurschus is a German Protestant theologian and pastor. She was Praeses of the Protestant Church of Westphalia from 2012 until 2023, in November 2015 she became Vice-President of the Council of the Protestant Church in Germany. She was President of the Council of the EKD from 2021 until 2023.

References

  1. ↑ Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland – Kirchemitgliederzahlen Stand 31. Dezember 2020 Archived 2021-12-21 at the Wayback Machine EKD, November 2021.
  2. ↑ Reformiert-info.de Archived April 13, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
  3. ↑ Landessynode 2016 – Trauung auch für Eingetragene Lebenspartnerschaften Archived 2017-11-15 at the Wayback Machine . (in German) Evangelical Church in the Rhineland, 15 January 2016.
  4. ↑ Antonia Lezerkoss: Kirche: Liturgie nach alter Preußenweise. Archived 2020-10-31 at the Wayback Machine Südwest Presse Online, 3 February 2017, retrieved 18 February 2018.
    Dagmar Stuhrmann: Kirche: Ausstellung "Evanglisch in Hohenzollern" macht Halt in Ebingen. Archived 2018-06-19 at the Wayback Machine Südwest Presse Online, 26 January 2017, retrieved 18 February 2018.
    Hechingen: Ein Abschied voller Wehmut. Archived 2018-02-18 at the Wayback Machine Schwarzwälder Bote, 13 February 2013, retrieved 18 February 2018.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.